WORLD REFUGEE DAY 20 June 2004 Final Report Public Affairs Unit (Private Sector and Public Affairs Service) Division of External Relations In collaboration with World Refugee Day Focal Points in the Field Introduction and evaluation: Elisabeth Nolet, Annalisa Montecalvo Country summaries: Ross J. Murray-Jones, Julie Vaillot Editing: Annalisa Montecalvo Layout and design: Ross J. Murray-Jones Printing: CopyQuick, Geneva Cover photo: Forum Barcelona 2004/E.Guillamet Children of various nationalities, UNHCR Goodwill Ambassador Angelina Jolie and Mayor of Barcelona and President of Forum Barcelona 2004, Joan Clos, hung lucky charms for refugees on the "Sky of Aspirations" at Forum Barcelona 2004, Spain. Also in the photo, on the left, are UNHCR’s Director of the Division of External Relations, Anne Willem Bijleveld, and the Head of the Public Affairs Unit, Elisabeth Nolet. World Refugee Day 20 June 2004 “A place to call home” STATEMENT BY RUUD LUBBERS U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees All of us need a place to call home - a place where we "belong." But for millions of refugees and displaced people around the world today, home is little more than a distant dream. Fleeing persecution and conflict, often with nothing more than the clothes on their backs, refugees are separated from all that is familiar - from family, friends, work, community and culture. Faced with an uncertain future in a strange land, the sense of loss and alienation can be overwhelming. To lose one's home can be to lose one's very identity. Yet, despite the enormity of their suffering, refugees never give up their dream of "home" and all that it entails - family, acceptance, security, a sense of belonging and self-worth. The fact that refugees maintain that hope, sometimes against all odds, should be an inspiration to all of us. That is why we at the U.N. Refugee Agency have chosen the very fitting theme of "A Place to Call Home" to mark this year's World Refugee Day on 20 June. As U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees, I believe there is no more important work than supporting refugees and displaced people around the world in their courageous struggle to rebuild their lives in a place they can call home. And I am proud that we have been doing just that for over five decades, helping to find solutions that have enabled more than 50 million refugees to pick up the pieces of their lives and start anew. Despite the perception in some, mainly industrialised, nations that they are being overwhelmed by refugees, the vast majority of those 50 million people returned to their own, often devastated, homelands. Refugees desperately want to go back home - a sentiment we have seen dramatically played out time and again in places as diverse as Kosovo and Cambodia, Mozambique and Timor-Leste. At the beginning of the millennium, UNHCR was helping some 1.1 million to re-start their lives after returning to their homelands. Today, we are helping more than 3.5 million who have gone home the past few years. That's why UNHCR considers voluntary repatriation - going back to one's original homeland once all the right conditions are in place -- the best solution for refugees. A total of 1.1 million refugees went home last year alone. The biggest single group - some 646,000 people -- - 3 - returned to Afghanistan, bringing to more than 3 million the number of Afghan refugees and displaced who have gone home since 2002. We also see large numbers of refugees returning home to Angola, Burundi, Iraq, Sierra Leone, Rwanda, Cote d'Ivoire, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Liberia, Eritrea, Croatia and Somalia, even though conditions in several of these countries are far from ideal. And more return possibilities are on the horizon. UNHCR has identified nine African nations where repatriation is already under way, about to start, or where there are good prospects for return in the near future. Between them, these nine countries account for at least 2 million refugees and millions more internally displaced. Recently, UNHCR brought together representatives of African nations, donor states, UN agencies and NGOs in Geneva to map out plans for a sustained effort to ensure that these nine African countries get the help they need to enable their citizens to go home and - just as importantly - stay home. Sustained international support throughout the entire process of repatriation, reintegration, rehabilitation and reconstruction is crucial if they are to succeed. But what about those refugees who can never go home? For them, UNHCR and its partners seek one of two solutions: integration in countries of first asylum or, if that is not possible, resettlement to a "third" country. In both situations, the ultimate aim is to enable refugees to resume their lives, albeit in a new country. This requires real generosity and burden-sharing by asylum countries - often poor themselves -- and by the relatively small number of predominantly developed nations that accept the bulk of resettled refugees. In 2003, some 56,000 refugees were resettled in 10 main resettlement destinations. Tens of thousands more were integrated in first asylum states. In addition to international support, including targeted development assistance to asylum countries, these solutions also require continuing courage and perseverance on the part of the refugees themselves as they adapt to their new homes. We can all assist in that process by extending a welcoming hand and by recognising that refugees are true survivors who can make valuable contributions to our communities. They, too, deserve a place to call home. - 4 - WORLD REFUGEE DAY ACTIVITIES BY COUNTRY The following part of the report is a summary of the World Refugee Day 2004 events which took place around the world. The information was drawn from a number of sources: evaluation reports and various e-mails sent to Public Affairs, as well as the World Refugee Day site. The summary is sub-headed by each individual Bureau: CASWANAME, Africa, the Americas, Asia and the Pacific and Europe. Each country is organised in alphabetical order and is colour- coded to its region. For more details on a specific country's activities, please contact the relevant Focal Point listed at the back of this report and visit the World Refugee Day site on the UNHCR website. - 13 - C A S W A N A M E ALGERIA In Tindouf, the celebration took place on 20 June. Refugees, representatives of implementing partners, UNHCR and local authorities gathered in the youth centre in L'auin camp. During the day, they participated in the harvest of animal fodder. In the evening, a final competition of football, basketball, volleyball and "Sega and Damma" enabled refugee youth to demonstrate their sports skills. This was followed by different exhibitions of handicrafts, drawings, sewing and wool work. Participants included the disabled as well as women and youth from several camps. The Women's Centre, OLOF PALM, hosted the evening, which started with a speech by the Governor, followed by a speech by the Head of the Sahrawi Women Union (UNMS). Most of the speeches highlighted the plight and suffering of refugees in the world and gave thanks to the humanitarian assistance of UNHCR and its partners, as well as to the Algerian Government. The Sahrawi refugees asked the UN agencies to assist them in finding a political solution to the conflict over Western Sahara so that they can return home in safety and dignity. Refugee youth from L'auin, Awserd and Smarra camps gave musical performances. Certificates were distributed to the graduates from L'auin youth centre. UNHCR also presented prizes to the winners of the various competitions and honorary certificates to those who participated in organising the day. In a gesture of recognition for UNHCR's work and assistance to the Sahrawi refugees, the Governor presented an enormous wall painting depicting all the different UNHCR activities in the camp. In Algiers, two TV programmes were broadcast, one about the refugee situation in the world and another on Palestinian refugees. A local newspaper also published an article citing the High Commissioner's message. EGYPT, ARAB REPUBLIC OF A gala dinner was held on 4 June to commemorate World Refugee Day and celebrate 50 years of UNHCR in Egypt. The event was attended by high level officials from the Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Interior, the League of Arab States, the diplomatic community, refugees as well as UNHCR’s implementing partners and representatives from other UN agencies. UNHCR Goodwill Ambassador Adel Imam co-hosted the event which received extensive media coverage from local and regional TV, as well as radio and print media. Several interviews were conducted with Mr. Imam, as well as UNHCR staff. Almost 400 guests enjoyed the open air atmosphere of Club Mohamed Ali by the Nile. Guests danced to the music of the famous Nubian singer Mohamed Mounir, who performed pro bono. The event was sponsored by Pepsi International, DHL, Club Mohamed Ali and Max Group. A football tournament for the Sudanese refugee community was organized by the Sacred Heart Church Sports Committee with the support of UNHCR. Twenty-two teams representing different districts of Cairo competed over a period of more than two months from 14 March till 6 June. The venue for the tournament was a donation from the “College De La Salle” French School. Matches were played on the school’s grounds every Friday and Sunday afternoon. On 19 June, UNHCR participated in the 2004 World Refugee Day Festival. The festival, which took place at the American University campus, was organised by STAR - Student Action for Refugees - with the support of UNHCR. The aim of the festival was to promote awareness of refugee issues in Egypt by celebrating the diverse talents of the different refugee communities living in Cairo.